Guest MINDSETTER™ Michael Gaffney: Today’s Worcester Needs a Different Approach to Crime

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Thursday, August 06, 2015

Guest MINDSETTER™ Michael Gaffney

Property crimes had essentially been decriminalized, with car owners displaying flags of surrender such as “radio already stolen” to prevent further break-ins. The Mayor, placed the blame at society’s feet, echoing the axiom that crime is best fought by increasing government spending on social programs or “fighting crime at its roots.” The answer was certainly not more police officers, as many activists noted. – New York City, 1989.

There is a sign on Salisbury Street that reads “We were robbed twice in nine months, nothing left.” We are told that “we are not going to arrest our way out of this” and that Worcester is a relatively safe city. We are told we need to engage the criminals and spend more money on social programs. We are told that we do not need more police. We read that a mob surrounded the police and taunted them while they were waiting for a tracking dog from the State Police to locate a pistol. This is today’s Worcester, but it sounds like yesterday’s New York City.

Growing Drug Problem Cause of Crime

Drug users and other criminals are breaking into homes to steal our property to sell to obtain money to purchase drugs. The dealers are using the drug money to organize, recruit, purchase illegal weapons, and grow the size of their territory which leads to larger gangs. For the last several months, the administration has been in denial about the root cause of crime in Worcester. Only in response to growing political pressure have they acknowledged that the drug problem has led to the gang problem.

To take back our city we must support the institutions that protect us and keep us safe. We must communicate in clear an unequivocal language that we will take swift and just action against the criminal element. Having allowed our police department, those people that put themselves in harm’s way to protect us, to be viciously attacked and undermined has provided a cover for drug dealers and other criminals to hide behind.

Additionally, publically stating that we are not going to arrest our way out of this sends a message to the criminals that we are not going to go after them. Stating that we are a relatively safe city indicates that the current crime wave is not a serious issue. Additional meetings and statements that we are outraged do little to stop the surge in crime. Blaming judges or laws in other states is simply an avoidance tactic and creates a rift with the judiciary. We should be reaching out to our judges and working with the Probation Departments rather than playing the blame game.

We need to properly fund our police department. The 2016 budget, which I voted against, increased spending by $22.6 million while only increasing spending on police by $153,920.00. It is clearly evident that we do not have the resources to combat crime. Utilizing overtime will stress the officers we do have and will not help increase police presence enough to combat the surge in crime. The current foot patrols offer the assurance of a police presence, but when they are out, they are not responding to calls. They are on foot and cannot get across the city or even across the neighborhood to be effective. The new class of recruits won’t hit the streets until 2016 and it does not provide enough officers to make up for attrition. We need to source and fund additional police officers from other areas.

Property crimes need to be timely responded to if we ever want to catch the perpetrators. Many residents are now of the mind-set to not report the crime as they have given up. After break-ins in my neighborhood, I went out and spoke to my neighbors only to find out their vehicles had been broken into. When asked if they reported the crime, the response was “why bother” the police can’t do anything about it. That’s not meant to be a slight against our police as the officers are doing the best they can with the resources they have available to them. It is just a clear indication of the need for more police officers and a commitment to reduce property crime.

What Can Be Done?

Many are asking what can be done to take back out city. One solution is not enough. We must employ a strategy of different tactics to be successful. One obvious tactic is to make sure we rebuild our police force and, in the interim, seek assistance from other police forces temporarily. Other tactics are not quite as obvious.

For example, efforts to combat the transfer of stolen goods need to be vastly improved. Arrests of the criminals and the parties fencing the goods must be increased to stem the money that is being used to purchase drugs and fuel the gang activity. When my laptop was stolen from my car during a smash and grab it took 45 minutes for an officer to respond. The thief was long gone by then. Further, I advised the responding officer that the laptop was password protected. The officer told me that they would wipe the hard drive and have it on the market. The thief isn’t wiping the drives or moving the goods, which is why we need to crack down on those moving the stolen goods. And yes, I am calling for more arrests.

Additionally, the City of Worcester Police Department does not have its own tracking dog and the current drug dog is set for retirement without a replacement. Clearly, we need the resources as our police officers were put into danger by an unruly crowd that felt empowered by the anti-police rhetoric to surround them while they waited for the State Police dog. We certainly need to retain the drug dog to have any chance in reducing the sale of illegal drugs.

Facts and Evidence Don't Lie

While additional social programs may be laudable and part of a larger long-term strategy, the city needs to break the financial cycle by attacking the property crimes and those that move stolen goods. The city also needs to crack down on the gang members and drug dealers with constant surveillance.

I know, the Chief has said that he has all he needs. However, the facts show shootings reached a record level last year and are about to surpass that record this year. And, as I predicted, it is spreading throughout the city and affecting innocent bystanders. We now have nearly two years of evidence that the plan is failing. I know I will be accused of playing Chief, but I certainly wasn’t elected to silently hand over our government and the safety of our residents to those we are told are the experts. It is my job to question. It is my job to demand results. Even experts do not always have all the answers so it behooves us to work together and consider all ideas.

I will conclude by quoting the conclusion of our current policing plan as presented to council on July 21, 2015. Keep in mind, this is the plan created to stem the current surge of violence and crime in our city:

“At a basic level, this Initiative asserts that Worcester is a community that loves and values all of its youngest members by ensuring their caregivers are safe and secure and that they have access to safe places to live, quality medical care, access to healthy nutrition, and excellent, culturally appropriate early education opportunities. With this foundation in place, we believe we will see a reduction in youth violence over the long term.”

While the conclusion hits all the usual talking points, I do not see it as a plan that will stop the surge in crime we are experiencing. We need to address this in the short-term and lay a foundation that will keep Worcester a safe city in the long-term.

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